Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 125 /Tuesday, June 30, 1998 /Rules and Regulations 35539

69. On page 15983, insert a new 16th

line from the bottom of column three to

read ‘‘SSN: Social Security Number’’.

70. On page 15983, in line 12 from the

bottom of column three, remove the

word ‘‘System’’ and replace it with

‘‘Services/System’’.

Dated: June 23, 1998.

Peggy Wood,

Deputy Director, Travel and Transportation,

Management Policy Division.

[FR Doc. 98–17107 Filed 6–29–98; 8:45am]

BILLING CODE 6820–34–M

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS

COMMISSION

47 CFR Part 61

[DA 98–914]

Electronic Tariff Filing System

AGENCY: Federal Communications

Commission.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: The Commission adopted a

Report and Order which requires that

incumbent local exchange carriers

(LECs) use the Common Carrier

Bureau’s (Bureau) Electronic Tariff

Filing System (ETFS) to officially file

tariffs and associated documents. The

Order amends the Commission’s tariff

filing rules to accommodate mandatory

electronic filing. This Order applies the

mandatory electronic filing requirement

to incumbent LECs only. However,

ETFS also enables interested parties to

access and download these documents

over the Internet, and to file petitions to

reject, or suspend and investigate tariff

filings electronically.

EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 1998.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Todd R. Mitchell or Geneva S. Butler,

Competitive Pricing Division, Common

Carrier Bureau, (202) 418–1520.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a

summary of the Commission’s Order

adopted on May 28, 1998, and released

on May 28, 1998. The full text of the

Order is available for inspection and

copying during normal business hours

in the Commission’s Public Reference

Room, Room 239, 1919 M Street N.W.,

Washington, DC. The complete text of

this decision may be purchased from the

Commission’s duplication contractor,

International Transcription Services Inc.

(ITS), (202) 857 3800, 1231 20th Street,

N.W., Washington, DC 20036.

1. The amended rules also provide

that the official filing date is the date on

which the document is received by

ETFS. The date of receipt shall be

determined by the time of the end of the

electronic transmission with 5:30 pm

Eastern Time as the cut-off time for

filings. Thus, if the transmission of a

filing ends after 5:30 pm Eastern Time

on a business day, the official filing date

will be the next business day. If the time

of termination of the filing is on a day

that is not a business day, such as, a

weekend or holiday, the official filing

date will be the next business day. ETFS

automatically establishes the date of

filing in accordance with these

requirements. Parties filing

electronically must request and receive

a receipt at the end of each filing session

in order to complete the transmission.

The receipt, which will be received at

the filer’s computer, will provide details

of the filing session, including the

official receipt date and time, and will

serve as the filing party’s official

documentation that the filing was

received by the Commission. The

Commission requires that all incumbent

LECs file all of their tariff base

documents electronically within the

first five business days of July, 1998.

Nonmajor rules, such as implementation

of electronic tariff filing, and rules

implementing the Telecommunications

Act of 1996 can go into effect as

determined by the agency as long as

Contract With America Advancement

Act (CWAAA) and required abstracts

have been filed with Congress. ETFS has

met these requirements, therefore the

waiting period for Federal Register

printing is not required.

2. Access to ETFS is via the Common

Carrier Bureau’s web page: <http://

www.fcc.gov/ccb>, for the incumbent

LECs and other interested parties.

Access to the web page is through an

Internet Service Provider (ISP) with

software that includes a browser

program, preferably Netscape 3.0 or

later versions. To view documents in

ETFS effectively, a user must have

Adobe Acrobat plug-in for browser

software. An ETFS user’s manual is

available for viewing or downloading, as

well as, in paper form from the

Commission’s commercial copy

contractor, ITS. A computer terminal is

available in the Commission’s Public

Reference Room, Room 239, 1919 M

Street NW, Washington, DC, for

accessing ETFS. The Commission has

established an e-mail address

(etfs@fcc.gov) and an information line

(202) 418–7700, for questions and

comments. Bureau, 202–418–1520.

Paperwork Reduction Act:

The Federal Communications

Commission received Office of

Management and Budget approval for

the following public information

collection pursuant to the Paperwork

Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104–

13. An agency may not conduct or

sponsor and a person is not required to

respond to a collection of information

unless it displays a currently valid

control number.

OMB Control No.: 3060–0745.

Expiration Date: 12/31/2000.

Title: Implementation of the Local

Exchange Carrier Tariff Streamlining

Provisions in the Telecommunications

Act of 1996—CC Docket No. 96–187.

Form No.: N/A.

Respondents: Business or other forprofit entities.

Estimated Annual Burden: 1400

respondents; .33 hours per response

(avg.); 462 total annual burden hours

(estimates for electronic filing only).

Estimated Annual Reporting and

RecordKeeping Cost Burden: $170,000.

Frequency of Response: On occasion.

Description: In the Tariff Streamlining

Report and Order, the Commission

adopted regulations implementing the

tariff streamlining provisions of the

Telecommunications Act of 1996. The

Commission determined, inter alia, that

it would establish a program of

mandatory electronic filing of tariffs and

associated documents by incumbent

local exchange carriers (LECs). The

Commission delegated authority to the

Chief, Common Carrier Bureau (Bureau),

to establish this program. This Order

amends rules to accommodate the

Commission’s Electronic Tariff Filing

System (ETFS). Incumbent LECs must

use the Bureau’s ETFS to officially file

tariffs and associated documents

beginning July 1, 1998. Other parties

may also file documents using ETFS,

such as petitions to reject, or suspend

and investigate tariff filings beginning

July 1, 1998. Obligation to respond:

Mandatory.

Public reporting burden for the

collection of information is as noted

above. Send comments regarding the

burden estimate or any other aspect of

the collection of information, including

suggestions for reducing the burden to

Performance Evaluation and Records

Management, Washington, D.C. 20554.

Ordering Clause

Accordingly, It Is Ordered, pursuant

to sections 1, 4(i), 10, 201–205, of the

Communications Act of 1934, as

amended, 47 U.S.C. 151, 154(i), 160,

201–205, and the authority delegated

pursuant to sections 0.91 and 0.291 of

the Commission’s rules, 47 CFR 0.91,

0.291, and paragraph 48 of the Tariff

Streamlining Order, 12 FCC Rcd 2170,

page 2195 (1997), part 61 of the

Commission’s rules is amended as set

forth in the rule changes.
35540 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 125 /Tuesday, June 30, 1998 /Rules and Regulations

It Is Further Ordered that these rules

shall become effective July 1, 1998.

List of Subjects in 47 CFR Part 61

Tariffs.

Federal Communications Commission.

Patrick J. Donovan,

Deputy Chief, Competitive Pricing Division,

Common Carrier Bureau.

Rule Changes

For the reasons discussed in the

preamble part 61 of Title 47 of the Code

of Federal Regulations, is amended as

follows:

1. The authority citation for part 61

continues to read as follows:

Authority: Section 1, 4(i), 4(j), 201–205,

and 403 of the Communications Act of 1934,

as amended; 47 U.S.C. 151, 154(i), 154(j),

201–205, and 403, unless otherwise noted.

2. Add new §§ 61.13 through 61.17

and a new undesignated center heading

after the heading ‘‘GENERAL RULES’’ to

read as follows:

Rules for Electronic Filing

Sec. 61.13 Scope.

Sec. 61.14 Method of filing publications.

Sec. 61.15 Letters of transmittal and cover

letters.

Sec. 61.16 Base documents.

Sec. 61.17 Method of filing applications for

special permission.

Rules for Electronic Filing

§ 61.13 Scope.

(a) This applies to all tariff

publications of carriers required to file

tariff publications electronically, and

any tariff publication that a carrier

chooses to file electronically.

(b) All incumbent local exchange

carriers are required to file tariff

publications electronically.

(c) All tariff publications shall be filed

in a manner that is compatible and

consistent with the technical

requirements of the Electronic Tariff

Filing System.

§ 61.14 Method of filing publications.

(a) Publications filed electronically

must be addressed to ‘‘Secretary,

Federal Communications Commission,

Washington, DC 20554.’’ The Electronic

Tariff Filing System will accept filings

24 hours a day, seven days a week. The

official filing date of a publication

received by the Electronic Tariff Filing

System will be determined by the date

and time the transmission ends. If the

transmission ends after the close of a

business day, as that term is defined in

§ 1.4(e)(2) of this Chapter, the filing will

be date and time stamped as of the

opening of the next business day.

(b) In addition, except for issuing

carriers filing tariffing fees

electronically, for all tariff publications

requiring fees as set forth in part 1,

subpart G of this chapter, issuing

carriers must submit the original of the

transmittal letter, (without attachments),

FCC Form 159, and the appropriate fee

to the Mellon Bank, Pittsburgh, PA, at

the address set forth in § 1.1105 of this

chapter. Issuing carriers submitting

tariff fees electronically should submit a

copy of the Form 159 and the original

transmittal letter to the Secretary of the

Commission in lieu of the Mellon Bank.

The Form 159 should display the

Electronic Audit Code in the box in the

upper left hand corner marked

‘‘reserved’’. Issuing carriers should

submit these fee materials on the same

day as the transmission in paragraph (a)

of this section.

(c) Carriers that are required to file

publications electronically may not file

those publications on paper or other

media unless specifically required to do

so by the Commission.

(d) Carriers that are required to file

publications electronically need only

transmit one set of files to the

Commission. No other copies to any

other party are required.

(e) Carriers that are required to file

publications electronically must

continue to comply with the format

requirements set forth in part 61.

§ 61.15 Letters of transmittal and cover

letters.

(a) All tariff publications filed with

the Commission electronically must be

accompanied by a letter of transmittal.

All letters of transmittal must:

(1) Concisely explain the nature and

purpose of the filing;

(2) Specify whether supporting

information is required for the new tariff

or tariff revision, and specify the

Commission rule or rules governing the

supporting information requirements for

that filing;

(3) Contain a statement indicating the

date and method of filing of the original

of the transmittal as required by

§ 61.14(b).

(b) Carriers filing tariffs electronically

pursuant to the notice requirements of

section 204(a)(3) of the Communications

Act shall display prominently, in the

upper right hand corner of the letter of

transmittal, a statement that the filing is

made pursuant to that section and

whether the tariff is filed on 7 or 15

days notice.

(c) Any carrier filing a new or revised

tariff made on 15 days’ notice or less

shall include in the letter of transmittal

the name, room number, street address,

telephone number, and facsimile

number of the individual designated by

the filing carrier to receive personal or

facsimile service of petitions against the

filing as required under § 1.773(a)(4) of

this chapter.

(d) The letter of transmittal must

specifically reference by number any

special permission necessary to

implement the tariff publication.

Special permission must be granted

prior to the filing of the tariff

publication and may not be requested in

the transmittal letter.

(e) The letter of transmittal must be

substantially in the format established

in §§ 61.33(g) and 61.33(h)(1).

(f) All submissions of documents

other than a new tariff or revisions to an

existing tariff, such as Base Documents

or Tariff Review Plans, must be

accompanied by a cover letter that

concisely explains the nature and

purpose of the filing. Publications

submitted under this paragraph are not

required to submit a tariffing fee.

§ 61.16 Base documents.

(a) The Base Document is a complete

tariff which incorporates all effective

revisions, as of the last day of the

preceding month. The Base Document

should be submitted with a cover letter

as specified in § 61.15(f) of this part and

identified as the Monthly Updated Base

Document.

(b) Initially, carriers that currently

have tariffs on file with the commission

must file a Base Document within five

days of the initiation of mandatory

electronic filing.

(c) Subsequently, if there have been

revisions that became effective up to

and including the last day of the

preceding month, a new Base Document

must be submitted within the first five

business days of the current month that

will incorporate those revisions.

§ 61.17 Method of filing applications for

special permission.

(a) An application for special

permission filed electronically must be

addressed to ‘‘Secretary, Federal

Communications Commission,

Washington, DC 20554.’’ The Electronic

Tariff Filing System will accept filings

24 hours a day, seven days a week. The

official filing date of a publication

received by the Electronic Tariff Filing

System will be determined by the date

and time the transmission ends. If the

transmission ends after the close of a

business day, as that term is defined in

§ 1.4(e)(2) of this chapter, the filing will

be date and time stamped as of the

opening of the next business day.

(b) In addition, except for issuing

carriers filing tariffing fees

electronically, for special permission

applications requiring fees as set forth

in part 1, subpart G of this chapter,
Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 125 /Tuesday, June 30, 1998 /Rules and Regulations 35541

issuing carriers must submit the original

of the application letter (without

attachments), FCC Form 159, and the

appropriate fee to the Mellon Bank,

Pittsburgh, PA, at the address set forth

in § 1.1105 of this chapter. Issuing

carriers submitting tariffing fees

electronically should submit a copy of

the Form 159 and the original

application letter to the Secretary of the

Commission in lieu of the Mellon Bank.

The Form 159 should display the

Electronic Audit Code in the box in the

upper left hand corner marked

‘‘reserved’’. Issuing carriers should

submit these fee materials on the same

day as the transmission in paragraph (a)

of this section.

(c) In addition, the requirements of

§ 61.153(c) are applicable, except the

additional copy addressed to the Chief,

Tariff and Pricing Analysis Branch is

not required.

3. Section 61.52 is amended by

revising paragraph (c) to read as follows:

§ 61.52 Form, size, type, legibility, etc.

* * * * *

(c) Incumbent local exchange carriers

shall file all tariff publications and

associated documents, such as

transmittal letters, requests for special

permission, and supporting information,

electronically in accordance with the

requirements set forth in § 61.13

through § 61.17.

[FR Doc. 98–17410 Filed 6–29–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6712–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

50 CFR Part 300

[Docket No. 980225048–8059–02; I.D.

062398A]

Pacific Halibut Fisheries; Washington

Sport Fishery

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Inseason action.

SUMMARY: NMFS announces changes to

the regulations for the Area 2A sport

fishery off the south coast of

Washington. A subsection of the south

coast of Washington area, from the

Queets River south to 47°00’00’’ N. lat.,

and east of 124°40’00’’ W. long. will be

open 7 days per week, beginning June

26, 1998, until 36,648 lb (16.6 mt) are

estimated to have been taken, after

which time all sport fishing for halibut

in the south coast of Washington area

between the Queets River and

Leadbetter Point will be closed. The

purpose of this action is to allow halibut

taken as bycatch in shallow-depth sport

fishing trips to be retained, rather than

discarded.

DATES: Effective June 25, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to

William Stelle, Jr., Regional

Administrator, Northwest Region,

NMFS, 7600 Sand Point Way, Seattle,

WA 98115. Information relevant to this

action is available for public review

during business hours at this address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Yvonne deReynier, 206-526-6120.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Area

2A Catch Sharing Plan for Pacific

halibut off Washington, Oregon, and

California is implemented in the annual

management measures for the Pacific

halibut fisheries published on March 17,

1998 (63 FR 13000). In accordance with

those regulations, the sport fishery in

the area from Queets River, Washington,

to Leadbetter Point, Washington opened

on May 1 and has continued for 5 days

per week (Sunday through Thursday)

since that opening. The 1998 subarea

quota for this fishery is 36,648 lb (16.1

mt). This all-depth sport fishery in this

area is scheduled to close when 1,000 lb

(0.45 mt) are projected to remain in the

subarea quota. Immediately following

that closure, the season would reopen in

the shallow-depth area from the Queets

River (47°31’42’’ N. lat.) south to

47°00’00’’ N. lat. and east of 124°40’00’’

W. long., and continue every day until

the full 36,648 lb (16.1 mt) subarea

quota is estimated to have been taken.

The best available data on June 16,

1998, indicates that as of June 14, 1998,

31,327 lb (14.2 mt) of halibut have been

taken in the area from the Queets River

south to Leadbetter Point, Washington.

Catch rate attainment for this subarea is

significantly slower than it has been in

past years, lengthening the directed

sport season over past season durations.

While a longer than usual halibut

season has been beneficial to area sport

fishery operations, the lengthened 5 day

per week fishery has had an

unanticipated impact on sport fishing

trips directed at species other than

halibut. Because the halibut fishery is

restricted to 5 days per week, halibut

must be discarded when caught

incidentally on fishing trips directed at

other species on days when halibut may

not be landed (Friday and Saturday). A

small number of halibut are taken from

the shallow depth area, where a

significant rockfish sport fishery occurs.

Allowing halibut landings for 7 days per

week from this area will eliminate

unnecessary discard of incidentallycaught halibut. Any halibut landed from

the shallow-depth fishery on a Friday or

a Saturday will count against the alldepth fishing quota of 35,648 lb (16.1

mt). NMFS has determined, in

consultation with Washington

Department of Fish and Wildlife

(WDFW), that the directed halibut

fishery for this area has been proceeding

at a sufficiently slow rate to justify

allowing Friday and Saturday halibut

landings from the shallow depth fishing

trips that are generally directed at

species other than halibut, but which

may catch halibut incidentally.

Section 24 of the 1998 Pacific halibut

regulations provides NMFS with the

flexibility to make certain inseason

management changes including, among

other things, modification of sport

fishing periods, and modification of

sport fishery days per calendar week. In

consultation with WDFW, the Pacific

Fishery Management Council, and the

International Pacific Halibut

Commission (IPHC), NMFS has

determined that the remaining quota for

this area is sufficient to open the

shallow depth fishery for 7 days per

week, beginning June 26, 1998. The alldepth fishery will continue as originally

specified in the annual management

measures, until 35,648 lb (16.6 mt) are

estimated to have been taken from the

south coast of Washington area. Once

35,648 lb (16.1 mt) are estimated to have

been taken, the shallow depth subarea

within the south coast of Washington

area (from the Queets River south to

47°00’00’’ N. lat. and east of 124°40’00’’

W. long.) will remain open every day

until 36,648 lb (16.6 mt) are estimated

to have been taken, or until September

30, whichever occurs first.

NMFS Action

For the reasons stated above, NMFS

announces the following change to the

1998 annual management measures (63

FR 13000, March 17, 1998, as amended).

For the Washington south coast subarea,

section 23(4)(C)(iii)(A) is amended as

follows:

(iii) In the area between the Queets

River, WA and Leadbetter Point, WA

(46°38’10’’ N. lat.), the quota for

landings into ports in this area is 36,648

lb (16.6 mt).

(A) The fishing season that began on

May 3 continues 5 days a week (Sunday

through Thursday) until 35,648 lb (16.1)

are estimated to have been taken and the

season is closed by the Commission.

Within the area described in this

section, above, the area from the Queets

River south to 47°00’00’’ N. lat. and east

of 124°40’00’’ W. long. is open 7 days

per week, and continues every day until